Main navigation

Secondary Navigation

Selena Gomez Responds to Critics of Her Netflix Series '13 Reasons Why': 'It's Not an Easy Subject'

By Rachel McRady 3:52 AM PDT, April 30, 2017

13 Reasons Why may be Selena Gomez’s passion project, but not everyone is pleased with the new Netflix teen drama. The series, which is based off of Jay Asher’s 2007 novel by the same name, follows the story of Hannah, a teen who committed suicide and the people she blames for her death.

Many have criticized the show as glorifying suicide at a time when mental health awareness is so prominent in society. In addition to fan reactions, star Paris Jackson called the series an “extremely triggering thing to watch,” and urged her followers not to watch it.

Gomez responded to those criticisms while speaking with the Associated Press this week. As an executive producer to the show, Gomez said that their goal was to reflect the dark, serious tone set by the book.

"We stayed very true to the book and that's initially what Jay Asher created, was a beautifully tragic, complicated yet suspenseful story, and I think that's what we wanted to do," she told the AP. "We wanted to do it justice and, yeah, [the backlash is] going to come no matter what. It's not an easy subject to talk about, but I'm very fortunate with how it's doing and I’m overwhelmed, very proud of it."

Gomez also spoke with ET at the WE Day celebration last week about the show’s success.

"13 Reasons Why was a really big moment for me, just because we had the book for seven years and we worked so hard on it," she told ET. "But, everything. You know, my personal life, and my family and my friends, I'm just, I'm in a really happy place. It's been good."